“How would you follow them?”
“Well, I’d eat pizza every day for dinner. I’d design houses and help build them. I’d take apart whatever I want, and nobody would care. Weekends would consist of watching sports and maybe playing a few games of poker during the day. And then at night, I’d go out and listen to live music. And instead of wearing swim trunks, I’d always skinny-dip.”
My face heats up at that visual, which I think was his intention, because he smirks.
“What about you?” he asks, leaning so close our foreheads nearly touch. I can feel his warm breath on my lips. “I mean, other than stealing all my fries.”
I lean back against the guardrail surrounding the bee exhibit. It’s Friday night. I’m not in the mood for hard questions. “Can I get back to you on that? I’m busy right now.”
“Oh yeah?” he asks with a laugh. “Busy doing what?”
“Beating you at a museum race!” I take off in a sprint down the long, wide hallway. Ezra runs behind me, his boots nipping at mine. Our laughter rings out in the empty museum. It’s then that I can’t deny it anymore.
I like him chasing me.
? ? ?
When I get home from soccer practice on Monday afternoon, I sit down at the kitchen island to work on my homework and essays. I pull my notebooks out of my bag and set them on the counter on top of a newspaper. Today’s Tennessean. I ignore it at first, but then notice Dad and Mom on the cover.
They’re at Centennial Park in Nashville, waving to a large crowd. A campaign event. I scan the article. Blah blah, tax reform, blah blah, farm bill, blah blah. Nothing new there. I’m not mentioned at all. Tossing the newspaper aside, I let out a breath of relief.
My cell buzzes. Oliver.
Dad came to visit today.
Yeah? At Princeton?
He brought a camera crew.
What!
It was ridiculous. He wanted footage of us playing catch. We put on gloves and pretended to throw a ball around for 3 mins. Then he left.
Ha! Why?
New commercial. He took footage of Jenna this morning.
So Dad flew to Connecticut and then New Jersey to video my brother and sister? Does this mean I need to be ready for a candid close-up? I rush to the powder room to check my skin. Thanks to stress, I have a few blemishes that might be visible on TV. Hopefully, a little concealer will do the trick. Wait—what if Dad doesn’t want me in the ad? No, when he makes a campaign video, the whole family is in it.
I’d check with Mom, but she’s at the Vanderbilt hospital today, meeting with young cancer patients. It’s something she enjoys doing to honor her sister’s memory.
Dad doesn’t come home until later that night. I’m in bed, checking over my AP chemistry homework, when I hear him trudging up the stairs and going into the master suite, the door shutting with a loud click.
The next morning, I find him at the breakfast table.
“Good morning,” we say to each other.
“Want your omelet?” Marina asks me.
“No, thanks. I’m meeting Ezra for doughnuts.” If Mom were up already, she’d scowl about me not eating a healthy breakfast. What surprises me is that Dad scowls. He totally sneaks fancy cheeses and sweets when Mom isn’t looking.
“Have you been hanging out a lot with Ezra?”
I shrug. “Yeah.”
“I don’t think he’s the best influence for you right now. You should find someone else to spend time with.”
“What are you talking about? Ezra’s a great guy.”
My father stares at me. “Everyone’s saying he dropped out of college.”
“He took a leave of absence,” I say defensively.
“That sounds like dropping out to me.”
“C’mon, Dad. Don’t be like his parents. Ezra just didn’t like his major.”
“I don’t want him filling your head with crazy ideas.”
“That won’t happen,” I say, even though Ezra’s already been pressuring me to think about what I truly want. “Look, Ezra’s nice.”
“You thought that boyfriend of yours was nice too. But you never once got in trouble before you met him. Then I started getting calls from the dean about you kissing under the stairs between classes. Sneaking out to meet him after dark. And then there were the pills.”
I hesitate for a moment at the mention of the drugs. “Look, Dad, I don’t understand why Ezra’s acting the way he is, but it’s not like he’s out drag racing every night. He’s a normal guy. He’s just trying to figure things out.”
“Until Ezra Carmichael gets his life in order, I suggest you spend time working on your applications. Do your homework.”
“That’s insulting. You know I always do my homework. I work really hard all the time!”
Dad puts his napkin on the table and stands up. “I know, I know.” He pulls me into an awkward hug. If I weren’t so angry, I might appreciate the grand display of fatherly affection.
“I love you,” he says with a pat on the back.
“I love you too,” I mumble. This is the first time I’ve talked to him in days. “Dad?”
“Yeah?”
“My interview with Yale Admissions is in two weeks. Um, are you still coming with me? If you can’t, that’s okay. Jenna said I can stay with her. She’ll take me. Mom would come, but she has that big fund-raiser at Vanderbilt that day. It’s been on her schedule for, like, a year,” I ramble.
Dad looks down at me. “I’ll take you up there. I’ll visit with your sister while you’re doing your interview.”
Of course he’ll spend his time with Jenna. I’m a lost cause.
I’m too pissed to even bring up the fact that Dad visited Jenna and Oliver to record them for a commercial. It’s not like I’m about to offer my help now.
But it never occurs to me that he doesn’t bring it up either.
A day later, I find out why.
Unintended Consequences
Besides Game of Thrones, I never miss that show I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant. Yes, it’s trashy, but I just can’t help myself.
I finished my homework an hour ago and spent some time noodling over my essays. I have the worst case of writer’s block, so I decide to indulge in the most craptastic show of all time. I flop down on the den couch and flick on the TV. If only I had some popcorn… I don’t think Mom keeps it in the house, because even though it’s made of whole grains, she’d be tempted to slather it in butter, and we couldn’t have that, because Mom doesn’t eat anything edible.
The show switches to a commercial, so I check my phone. I have a new group text from Steph and Madison. They are gabbing about the show, because they love it too. Their snarky comments make me smile. No texts from Ezra. After the Cumberland Science Museum, we haven’t talked much except for today’s five-minute coffee break at Donut Palace.
I decide to text him: Do you watch I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant?
A minute later, he replies, What is that?
A reality show about women who are pregnant but don’t know it.
Sounds terrible.
Oh stop. You’d love it!
It takes forever for Ezra to write back. You’re as bad as Oll. He loves this show where ppl bid on storage units.
Storage Wars! It’s great.
Oh, you.